Economy
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It’s the banks, stupid
Why does Australia continue to have a rampant cost of living crisis? That’s the $300 billion question. The hard men of Australia’s economic press claim it’s because of inflated wages and low productivity. Yet evidence suggests it’s mainly because of our big four banks. Continue reading »
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Despite recent increases, JobSeeker still leaves people below the poverty line. Here’s why that affects us all
Over the past two years, there has been some progress in improving the JobSeeker payment. But payment levels remain below the poverty line. Continue reading »
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Smart appliances, smarter economy: Reviving China’s growth through innovation
Describing my grandfather as frugal is an understatement. Over the years, I have watched him patch and mend, prolonging the life of everything from leaky kettles to threadbare armchairs. My attempts to convince him to part with aging household items were always met with the same stubborn reply: “It still works.” Continue reading »
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AUKUS, Trump and independence
How should Australia respond when the US, our closest ally, is engaged in a very public and petulant global meltdown? Continue reading »
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Labor’s strong federal prospects in WA
The results of the Western Australian election on Saturday give credence to the latest opinion polling showing a trend back towards Labor in the past few weeks. Until mid-February the polls were suggesting the Coalition would have sufficient support to form (at least) a minority government. Continue reading »
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Is PM Albanese about to amaze Australia?
Amazing? PM Albanese is the first Australian prime minister since John Curtin to push back publicly on our security against a global leader since John Curtin recognised the danger of an exploitative Britain eight decades ago. Curtin acted. Could it be that Albanese just might act too? Continue reading »
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Cut defence spending to make us stronger and safer
There’s a simple solution to the problem of Chinese warships sailing around Australia: a reciprocal agreement – you don’t sail off our coast and we won’t sail off yours. Continue reading »
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Going, going… to the highest bidder: Australia’s school system
Recent headlines confirm that it is now difficult to deal with the market forces that successive governments in this country have unleashed in our school system and which are now driving it in perilous directions. Continue reading »
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Imagine a secure Australia post-ANZUS and AUKUS
Let’s test Hugh White’s contention, expressed in The Saturday Paper on 8 March (‘Trump’s conduct on Ukraine prompts strategic reckoning”), that Australia will perhaps sooner rather than later have to confront the end of the US Alliance. Continue reading »
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Government funding increases entrench private school resource advantage
Government funding increases for Catholic and Independent schools have outstripped those for public schools since 2009 and entrenched a major resource advantage for them. New figures published by the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority show Catholic and Independent schools have a much higher income per student than public schools across Australia and in nearly Continue reading »
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Maybe the inflation surge didn’t happen the way we’ve been told
According to Reserve Bank deputy governor Andrew Hauser last week, we’ve entered a world characterised not just by volatility, complexity and uncertainty, but also by “ambiguity” – a world where “you don’t know the model”, meaning that “judgment and instinct are as important as formal analysis”. Continue reading »
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Sad day for the US as it fails an ally
I don’t intend to move these round-ups into international relations. There are excellent Australian sources with a foreign policy orientation – Pearls and Irritations, the Lowy Institute and Australian Foreign Affairs. But events around Trump’s betrayal of Ukraine should have repercussions not only for our foreign policy, but also for our domestic policy, particularly in the way we Continue reading »
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Victoria’s government and opposition put Grand Prix ahead of their citizens
With the nation’s worst state debt and the looming budget, we hear almost weekly of the Victorian Government’s desperate funding cuts to essential services. While, for example, our nurses, childcare and aged care workers and our police are very much valued and needed, they appear to come a poor second in financial support to the Continue reading »
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Australia’s economy has turned the corner, and consumer spending was a big help
Australia’s economy expanded at the fastest pace in two years in the December quarter, boosted by an improvement in household spending and stronger exports. Continue reading »
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AUKUS: the central point of strategic failure
Donald Trump loves a deal. With the ageing Virginia class submarines, instead of decommissioning them, what better than to sell them to a subservient nation who not only will pay billions for them, but use them as a compliant extension of the US navy? Continue reading »
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Global capitals eye future with investments in China’s tech industry
A dozen days ahead of this Chinese New Year, a large-scale exhibition opened at the Hong Kong Museum of Art. Continue reading »
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The key to saving Whyalla and seizing massive national security rewards? A clean commodities trading company
The Albanese government’s decision to partner with South Australia to save the Whyalla Steelworks is one of profound significance for Australia’s national security. The governments’ vision — to turn Whyalla into a pioneering green iron and steel facility and capture global first-mover advantage — is hugely ambitious. Done right it has the potential to boost Continue reading »
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If you wanted to tell a story about a hopeful new world, I wouldn’t start from here
We need to tell a new/old story. Humans are social creatures of a shared story. We tell ourselves into being who we are by the stories we share. From First Peoples’ Songlines, rhythmically repeated and updated to incorporate the latest world developments, to Harry Potter novels and The Matrix movies, we remember and become the Continue reading »
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Resolving insolvency: Tariffs are key to Trump’s solution
Donald Trump has resorted to tariffs, imposed against friend and foe alike. There are no compromises or special deals because it’s not about favours for friends, or compliance, or punishment. Tariffs are part of a desperate bid to stave off insolvency. Continue reading »
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The real truth on productivity: The bosses aren’t trying hard enough
At last, some sense on the causes of our poor productivity performance. For ages, we’ve been told it’s the government’s fault — maybe even the voters’ fault — for failing to make economic reforms. But last week the econocrats finally set the record straight: the problem is, our businesses have stopped doing the things that Continue reading »
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Bulk-billing incentives should be the start of something bigger
The federal government’s new $8.5 billion investment in general practice is a powerful painkiller. It will bring welcome relief to patients facing GP fees, and to a primary care system that’s under pressure. But it won’t cure the system’s underlying problems. Continue reading »
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Garnaut: The renewables boom within our reach
Donald Trump might be a speed hump on the road to net zero, but the business and climate case for renewables leaves Australia in the box seat to capitalise. Continue reading »
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To make Medicare healthy again, our leaders must treat these worrying symptoms
I don’t know if you noticed, but the federal election campaign began on Sunday. The date of the election has yet to be announced – it may be mid-April or mid-May – but hostilities have begun. And they began with an issue that’s been big in election campaigns for 50 years: Medicare. Continue reading »
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China: Still ahead of the curve in the global economic game
US President Donald Trump’s decision to first place, and then delay, a 25% tariff on goods from neighbouring Canada and Mexico, along with his hitting China with an additional 10% tariff increase has made quite a splash in the news. Continue reading »
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Circularity can revive caring and compassion while sustaining the paradigm of care
Peanut Butter is a staple diet for many of us living busy lives and seeking tasty nutrition in a jar. And for those like me who love Bega’s brand of (Smooth) PB (see how it naturally aligns with ‘Personal Best’?), we can be doubly proud that the Australian-owned company behind this brand is part of Continue reading »
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Can Europe dare to do the smart thing and partner with China in Africa?
Europe’s relationship with Africa encompasses significant grim history. Yet the continent is more central to how Europe’s future will look than ever. Meanwhile, China’s remarkably constructive relationship with Africa today presents a potential primary mode for substantially enhancing Africa’s prospects. This geopolitical fact also represents a crucial opportunity for Europe to partner with China and Continue reading »
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At last: A serious attempt to fix retirement phase of super
Last year’s Treasury Discussion Paper, “The Retirement Phase of Superannuation“, highlighted the emphasis that has been placed on the accumulation phase of Australia’s superannuation system, and the continued slow progress on the retirement phase, 30 years on from the system’s creation. Sadly, the government’s timid response in November to Treasury’s suggestions and the wealth of Continue reading »
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What if there is no way of Australia placating Trump?
As a quick study in the psychology of Australia-US relations, last week had it all. Continue reading »
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Trump’s tariffs will not restore American manufacturing
The decline in manufacturing jobs is common to most developed economies and is not unique to the US. Further, Donald Trump is nothing if not delusional, and his tariffs will only damage both the US economy and others as well. Continue reading »
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We may be short of leaders, but we’re not short on false prophets
With this year’s federal budget supposedly brought forward to 25 March, the seasonal peak in business bulldust has come early. Last week, Canberra kicked off an annual ritual little noticed in real-world Australia, the call for “pre-budget” submissions on what the government should do in its budget. Continue reading »
